Vietnam will serve as the first ASEAN export destination for these Indonesian Mitsubishi crossovers.
In a surprisingly short time since its global launch in Indonesia last August, Mitsubishi has already announced that it will begin the export of its new Xforce from its production hub over there. The first international destination these tri-diamond compact crossover will see its Vietnam, with further rollout to other regions in ASEAN and even further afield occurring in the near future.
Manufactured at the automaker’s PT Mitsubishi Motors Krama Yudha Indonesia, the compact crossover left for Vietnam from the port of Tanjung Priok. A commemorative ceremony was held at the port, with official from both the Indonesian and Japanese government, as well as members of the automaker, in attendance at the event.
“We are very proud to export from our production hub in Indonesia. Going forward, we hope to export to various regions, thereby making a further contribution to the Indonesian economy and the development of the Indonesian automobile industry.” said Takao Kato, president and chief executive officer of Mitsubishi Motors regarding the export of the Xforce.
Now just for those who may be perhaps still unfamiliar with this compact crossover, the Xforce is Mitsubishi’s new B-segment SUV offering to rival the Honda HR-V and Toyota Corolla Cross. Sharing the same general underpinnings as the popular Xpander jacked-up MPV, this new model has been developed as an ASEAN-specific model exclusively for the region.
Design highlights with this Xforce starts from the latest iteration of Mitsubishi’s Dynamic Shield face flanked by horizontal T-shaped LED headlights up front, with a similar lighting signature to give its rump a chunky yet modern look. The sides of this compact crossover meanwhile features a floating roof and some rather pronounced wheel arch designs, which under them are polished alloy wheels that can go up to 18-inches in diameter.
Moving along inside and starting on the practicality front, Mitsubishi is claiming for this compact crossover to boast top-class seating space and a cargo capacity that is among the best in its segment. Said boot is to be further made more useful by the available option of a powered tailgate with hands-free access, which is then complemented by the other tech toys within the XForce, which includes an 8-inch central infotainment screen and an available eight-speaker Dynamic Sound Yamaha Premium sound system exclusively co-developed between the two brands.
Powering the Xforce is the sole engine option of a 1.5 litre naturally-aspirated MIVEC petrol four-pot shared with the Xpander, which is currently rated in Indonesia at 105 PS and 141 Nm of torque. Different to its MPV sibling however is in its use of a CVT (in place of a 4-speed automatic) to drive its two front-wheels, with Mitsubishi also having thrown in its Active Yaw Control (AYC) and four selectable driving modes (Normal, Wet, Gravel, Mud) into this compact crossover.
There is currently no official word yet from Mitsubishi Malaysia regarding the possible arrival of this compact crossover, but chances are high that this ASEAN-centric offering will be making its way over here sooner rather than later. With the new Triton set to be launching locally in 2024 too, this year might just be a good year to be a tri-diamond dealer…
